After our 4 1/2 week Asia and Australia tour we had a couple of days of training in Holland before we had to board another flight again. On Sunday June 14th we flew to New York for the first of two North American tournaments: The US Open and the Canada Open.
New York is not really New York. In fact the tournament is held in Brentwood on Long Island at about an hour drive from the Big Apple.
The first days we always use for training and getting accustomed to the time difference. The last mentioned didn’t cause any problems but the training was not a success. They had improvised badminton courts taped on an indoor athletics subsurface. Not exactly the ideal circumstances for a Grand Prix Gold tournament in the Olympic qualification year. I really wonder when BWF will finally open it’s eyes and start giving fines for such abuses.
But more important are the matches we played. After a rather easy win in the first round we were facing a Taiwanese pair in the second round. We lost this match in the last 5 points of the third game. Completely unnecessary, very disappointing and harsh reality!
As usual there is no time to linger in your disappointment, you are in a badminton roller coaster which never stops so we immediately focused on next week’s Canada Open in Calgary. Still I made time to pay a short visit to the Big Apple and enjoy this vibrant metropole. It was good to gain new energy and prepare for the trip to Calgary on Sunday.
The last 2 editions of the Canada Open, a Grand Prix tournament, we made it to the finals. This year we were seeded fifth. Via two hard-fought victory’s on, again, concrete floors (Hello BWF!?) we reach the quarter finals. There we meet the first seeded German pair Fuchs and Michels whom we played 2 times before. We also know them from the German Premier League where we also meet them quite regularly. To be honest, in this match we had nothing to contribute. We were just outclassed. We lost the match by 15 and 12 and that was the tournament it was.
Unfortunately these tournaments haven’t brought what I had hoped for, more victories and better playing. The last weeks we haven’t even come close to our top level which we reached at the end of 2014. The coming weeks we’ll have to find out how to get to that level again in order to perform at our best when we play the World Championships in Jakarta next August.
I write this just before boarding my KLM flight back to Holland. After having been abroad 46 days out of the past 54 it is about time to go home! I wish all my followers and other badminton lovers a great summer and after that a great start to the new season.
Yesterday a great organized Sudirman Cup ended with an anticipated title for superpower China. Japan was beaten 3 to 0 and who else than badminton legend Lin Dan scored the winning point. Every time again I am amazed how he can make our sport look so easy. His footwork, his movements on court and his unbelievably effective way of playing are unique. A pleasure to watch and secretly to be very jealous of!
It was a pleasure to play in the arena specially built for the Sudirman Cup. Dongguan is a city where badminton is played just a bit more than in other Chinese cities, at least that was what one of our interpreters and assistants told me. In any case the matches were well attended. Moreover, there were 1.100 volunteers in and around the arena of which 600 residents and 500 students from Dongguan. For them this was a fantastic experience since they were chosen from many candidates to be part of this tournament. At any time of the day they were enthusiastic and incredibly friendly.
Our own competition in the 2nd group went well. In the group matches we consecutively defeated Canada, Spain and Singapore. After a false start in the mix against Canada we could take our revenge against Singapore. Samantha and I played against the former top 10 pair and current number 16 of the world Chrisnanta and Neo. We controlled the match well and despite a troubled start in the second game we could pursue our strategy well. As a result we won in two games and concluded this last group match with a 4-1 win. The game was broadcasted and if you like you may watch it here
Our first place in group 2 meant we had to play Hong Kong for the 13Th place in the tournament. When you are in group 2 it means that the 13th place is the highest position you can get. In fact it is a strange idea because you always want to play to win a tournament. As a country we will have to work hard during the coming years to improve our ranking in all areas and may be after some four years we’ll be able than to compete in the Champions group. If countries like Russia, England and Germany can do it, why not us? Moreover, the competition against Hong Kong was lost 1 by 3 and Samantha and I didn’t have to play the last match.
The next morning we were picked up very early to catch our flight to Melbourne and that’s where I write this report. How cool is that! I did not ever expect to get there because of the enormous distance to be bridged. Even from southern China it is still a 9.5 hours flight. However, Australia now has a Super Series tournament as well which will be held next week in Sydney. Before we go there next Sunday, we first join the trainings this week of the Australian National Team. Australia is a sporting nation at heart and their training center is beautiful and fully equipped. A great location to spend an interim week! The training sessions are mostly early in the morning so we can also enjoy some free time which we will obviously spent well. It’s autumn, almost winter here, but the weather is still very nice and
Melbourne is a great city! In short, it’s a great trip so far and I fully enjoy it!
Next week we have a tough draw. In the first round we have to play the Chinese Kai Lu and Huang Yaqiong who are in the top eight of the world ranking. At the World Championships we were beaten in two games but we will again analyze them and find a good strategy for that match. I’m very much looking forward to it! But now I’ll first enjoy Australia’s coffee capital, Melbourne!
Een geweldig georganiseerde Sudirman Cup is gisteren geëindigd met een verwachte titel voor grootmacht China. Zij versloegen Japan met 3-0 en wie anders dan badmintonlegende Lin Dan mocht het winnende punt binnen slaan. Ik verbaas mij er nog steeds over hoe makkelijk hij onze sport eruit kan laten zien. Zijn voetenwerk, bewegingen over de baan en zijn zeldzaam effectieve speelwijze zijn ongeëvenaard. Een genot om naar te kijken en stiekem om erg jaloers van te worden!
Ook het speciaal voor de Sudirman Cup gebouwde stadion was een genot om in te spelen. Dongguan is een stad waar badminton nog net wat meer gespeeld wordt dan in andere Chinese steden, heb ik mij laten vertellen door onze tolk en begeleidster, en de wedstrijden werden dan ook goed bezocht. Overigens liepen er 1100 vrijwilligers in en om het stadion waarvan 600 inwoners en 500 studenten uit Dongguan. Voor hen was dit toernooi een wereldervaring aangezien zij uit vele gegadigden waren gekozen om dit toernooi mee te mogen maken. Ze waren enthousiast en ontzettend vriendelijk op elk moment van de dag.
Onze eigen wedstrijden in de 2e groep verliepen goed. In de poule wedstrijden versloegen wij achtereenvolgens Canada, Spanje en Singapore. Na een valse start in de mix tegen Canada konden Samantha en ik tegen Singapore onze revanche nemen. We speelden tegen het voormalige top 10 koppel en de huidige nummers 16 van de wereld, Chrisnanta en Neo. We controleerden de wedstrijd goed en konden, ondanks een onrustig begin van de tweede game, onze tactiek goed uit blijven voeren. Hierdoor wonnen wij in twee games, een goede winst voor ons en bovendien een 4-1 winst in de laatste groepswedstrijd. De wedstrijd werd uitgezonden en kan je hier terug kijken.
De groepswinst betekende een strijd om de 13e plaats tegen Hong Kong. Als je in groep 2 zit kan je hooguit 13e worden en dat is natuurlijk op voorhand een rare gedachte omdat je altijd wil spelen voor het winnen van een toernooi. De komende jaren zullen we als land hard moeten werken aan onze ranking in alle onderdelen zodat we misschien over een jaar of vier wel in de kampioensgroep kunnen komen. Als het landen als Rusland, Engeland en Duitsland lukt, waarom dan ons niet? Overigens werd de wedstrijd tegen Hong Kong met 1-3 verloren en hoefden Samantha en ik in de laatste partij niet meer in actie te komen.
De volgende ochtend werden we al vroeg opgehaald om onze vlucht naar Melbourne te pakken en daar tik ik nu dit verhaal. Hoe gaaf is dat! Ik had niet verwacht daar ooit te komen vanwege de enorme afstand die overbrugd moet worden, want zelfs vanuit zuidelijk China is het nog 9,5 uur vliegen. Maar, ook Australië heeft sinds kort een Super Serie toernooi en dat wordt volgende week gehouden in Sydney. Voor we daar aanstaande zondag naartoe reizen, trainen we eerst deze week mee met de Australische selectie. Australië is een sportland in hart en nieren en hun trainingscentrum is prachtig en van alle gemakken voorzien. Een prima locatie om een tussenweek te houden! De trainingen zijn grotendeels vroeg in de ochtend zodat we ook nog wat kunnen genieten van wat vrije tijd die we uiteraard goed zullen besteden hier. Het is herfst, bijna winter, hier maar het weer is nog steeds erg lekker en Melbourne is een geweldige stad! Kortom, ik ben bezig aan een geweldige trip en geniet er ontzettend van!
I am happy to announce that from May 1 FN-Trendy will support me in my sports career. FN Trendy is a young and trendy company offering a variety of exclusive fashion brands for both adults and kids. The collection of clothes available is designed and developed by young talented designers from Asia.
Founder Frans Schouten is a big fan of fashion and Asia and he loves the Badminton sport. As I am visiting Asia frequently to play tournaments and have been a passionate badminton player for more than 20 years we found each other quite easily. I will commit myself for the full 100% to promote FN Trendy. I am looking forward to a nice cooperation.
Ik ben blij te melden dat per 1 mei FN-Trendy mij gaat ondersteunen bij mijn topsport carrière. FN-Trendy is een hip bedrijf dat kleding aanbiedt voor zowel jong als oud, ontworpen door jong designtalent uit Azië. Oprichter Frans Schouten is een groot fan van mode, Azië en ook van de badmintonsport. Aangezien ook ik veel in Azië te vinden ben en voor mij de badminton sport al lang een “way of living†is, was het logisch dat wij elkaar op enig moment zouden vinden. Ik zal mij voor de volle 100% inzetten om het merk FN-Trendy zo goed mogelijk uit te dragen.
A series of 3 consecutive tournaments has come to an end and with varying results. I am not satisfied and in the period to come we’ll have to perform better.
The German Open in my “home port†Mülheim was, much to my regret, a short tournament. We played a short match against a Danish pair. It was a close match but at decisive moments we failed to score. It was unfortunate, no result but afterwards we had an extensive and analyzing discussion which was a firm basis for the next 2 events and that obviously was worth a lot.
The next event was last weeks Yonex All England in Birmingham. The oldest badminton tournament in the world, the Wimbledon of the Badminton Sport. I get there quite a number of years now and every year again it’s a privilege to be there and compete. The organization, the entourage, the lively business center around the arena and the superbly renovated Barclaycard Arena itself make it very special.
In the first round we met an American pair which is in the top 30 and plays many tournaments in both North and South America. A straight 2 game victory put us in the second round where we were confronted with the Danes Fischer and Pedersen. We played them twice before, a few weeks ago at the European Championships for teams and last year in April at the individual European Championships. On both occasions we lost and also this time we couldn’t win. Still we are getting closer and from a tactical point of view we could learn a lot from this match because in spite of their second place on the world ranking also the Danes have some weak spots. Especially in the second game we managed to win a number of good rallies.
Finally the Swiss Open in Basel. A Grand Prix Gold tournament just like the German Open. In the first round we met the German pair Schwenger and Nelte who were seeded eighth in this tournament. We have played them twice before and the head to head score is 1-1. We make a bad start in the first game, very little rhythm in the short rallies but a good fighting spirit. Still we lose the first game. With a small tactical adjustment and our fighting spirit we manage to control the game better and win it. The third game is exciting and we stay close together till 15-15. And here the match really begins. A few well played rallies, a bit of luck on our side and we score a series of consecutive points which bring us the win. A nice, hard-fought victory with a good fighting spirit.
In the second round we were facing a French pair. A similar scenario as the day before. A bad start and a loss in the first game, a win in the second game and better playing. At the interval in the third game we have a lead and from that moment on things start to go wrong. We lose control and we give away the 3 points lead. Our opponents seem to get “wingsâ€. They control the last rallies of the match while we are too passive. We lose and we are very disappointed, which is an understatement. This really was an unnecessary loss and that shouldn’t happen. From the bottom of my heart I state that we shall do everything possible to make that this won’t happen again.
Last Saturday I gave a clinic together with Gayle Mahulette to a group of very enthousiastic youngsters. It was a great session and the kids loved it. If you are interested in having a badmintonclinic aswell? Just go to the page ‘’clinic’’ on my website and get in touch
Een toernooireeks van drie is ten einde met wisselende resultaten. Daar ben ik niet tevreden over en dat moet simpelweg beter gaan de komende periode.
De German Open in mijn thuishaven Mülheim was helaas een kort toernooi. We speelden tegen een koppel uit Denemarken een close wedstrijd waarin we tekort kwamen op de beslissende momenten. Jammer, geen resultaat maar wel door een uitgebreide nabespreking en analyse een betere basis gelegd voor de volgende twee evenementen, wat uiteraard ook een hoop waard is.
Tenslotte afgelopen week de Swiss Open in Basel. Een Grand Prix Gold toernooi net als de German Open. In de eerste ronde speelden we tegen Schwenger en Nelte uit Duitsland, achtste geplaatst in dit toernooi, head to head stand 1-1. Een zeer slechte start in de eerste game, weinig ritme in de korte rallies, maar wel veel vechtlust ondanks dat we de eerste game ruim verloren. Met die vechtlust en een kleine tactische aanpassing speelden we onszelf wat beter in de partij en konden we de tweede game pakken. Een spannende derde game waarin het gelijk op gaat tot 15-15. En daar ”begint” de wedstrijd eigenlijk. Een paar goede rallies, wat geluk aan onze zijde en we pakken een serie punten op rij dat genoeg blijkt te zijn voor wedstrijdwinst. Een mooie, zwaarbevochten overwinning met goede vechtlust.
De volgende dag een wedstrijd tegen een Frans koppel. Een zelfde scenario als de dag ervoor. Een zwak begin en verlies in de eerste game, gamewinst met beter spel in de tweede game. Bij de interval in de derde game staan we voor, maar daar gaat het ook gelijk mis. Een drie punten voorsprong wordt te snel uit handen gegeven. In plaats van dat wij verder uitlopen krijgen zij vleugels. Ze zijn leidend in de laatste rallies van de wedstrijd, terwijl wij te passief zijn: we verliezen en balen tot en met! Dit is nou een echt onnodig verlies, dat mag niet gebeuren en uit de grond van mijn hart zeg ik dat we er alles aan zullen doen dat dit niet meer kan gebeuren.
Afgelopen weekend een leuke clinic gegeven samen met Gayle Mahulette voor een groep dolenthousiaste kids van een jaar of 15. Gaaf om te doen. Wil je ook eens een badmintonclinic ervaren? Kijk dan op mijn site onder het kopje clinics
2015 is on it’s way for a while and I would have liked to start the new year in a positive way, but unfortunately that’s not the case!
Late November, I was struck down by a viral infection that I probably had brought back from Asia. Eight days of high fever and pneumonia on top of that made that I was housebound for almost 3 weeks and consequently that I had to skip the Italian Open as well as four matches in the Bundesliga.
When, after a 10 day course of antibiotics, the pneumonia was cured my sports doctor allowed me to start building up my condition again but very carefully and quietly. Carefully and quietly I thought. I’m cured am I not? Well, I soon found out that I underestimated this building up. As a consequence of my illness my condition had completely deteriorated. After every exercise my heart beat was much too high and it remained high instead of slowing down again. Because of that my body couldn’t recover enough. Even after the resumption of training in the new year I still could not perform at a good level nor could I do real workouts. The only positive thing was that I could attend the training sessions again.
For the first tournament of the year, the Swedish Masters in Uppsala, the flight and hotel had been already booked and paid for so I decided to participate. Another reason was that it also was a good test to find out where I exactly was in terms of fitness. Now I’m back home and I can be brief: it was confronting and frustrating to find out that I was falling short in almost all aspects of the game. In itself this is not really surprising. Usually my strength is the hard work I deliver and I haven’t been able to work hard for too long a period of time. The result is that the conditional as well as the performance level decreases rapidly. Partly as a result of all this our Danish opponents in the quarter finals of the Swedish Masters were too strong for us; 21-19 and 21-17.
Still, I’m glad that I played, because it has given me the insight that currently I am physically not able to play a tournament. In the coming weeks my focus will be on regaining match fitness again, because there is an important period coming up including the European Championship for national teams in Leuven and three consecutive tournaments in Germany, England and Switzerland. From now on I will focus on these events where I must and shall be fully recovered from this incredibly annoying pneumonia that has wrecked my body and of which I experience the consequences every day.
We zijn alweer even onderweg in 2015 en ik had graag gezien dat ik het nieuwe jaar wat positiever was begonnen, maar helaas is dat niet het geval!
Eind november werd ik geveld door een virusinfectie die ik waarschijnlijk mee had genomen uit Azië. Acht dagen hoge koorts en daar bovenop nog een longontsteking zorgden ervoor dat ik bijna 3 weken aan huis gekluisterd was en daardoor het Italian open en 4 wedstrijden in de Bundesliga moest laten schieten.
Toen na een 10 daagse antibiotica kuur de longontsteking weg was mocht ik van de sportarts weer heel rustig gaan opbouwen. Heel rustig opbouwen, dacht ik nog. Ik ben toch weer beter? Nou, ik kwam er al snel achter dat ik dat opbouwen behoorlijk onderschatte. Mijn conditie was in die ziekteperiode veranderd van een top- in een flopconditie. Bij elke inspanning had ik een veel te hoge hartslag die ook niet, zoals normaal, weer daalde maar juist hoog bleef. Hierdoor herstelde mijn lichaam weinig tot niet. Ook bij het hervatten van de trainingen in het nieuwe jaar kon ik nog lang geen maximale arbeid verrichten, maar in ieder geval wel weer de trainingen volgen.
Aangezien alles voor het eerste toernooi van het jaar, de Swedish Masters in Uppsala, al geboekt en betaald was besloot ik wel deel te nemen. Daarbij kwam dat ik het ook wel een goede test vond om uit te vinden waar ik nou precies stond qua conditie. Nu ik terug ben in Nederland kan ik er vrij kort over zijn: het was confronterend en frustrerend om te merken dat ik in bijna alle aspecten van het spel nog veel te kort kom. Nou is dat op zich niet zo vreemd. Ik moet het doorgaans hebben van hard werken en dat heb ik al te lang niet meer kunnen doen. Het gevolg is dat het niveau dan snel daalt. De Deense tegenstanders in de kwartfinale waren als gevolg daarvan met 21-19 en 21-17 te sterk voor ons.
2014 is almost history! For me personally it was a great year with many beautiful moments. I will give a short review.
The start of 2014 was already promising. On January 2nd we were informed that we would get a new full time trainer/coach: Kim Nielsen, who was a coach of the Danish National team for quite some time. He would start on April 1 and really settle himself in Arnhem. Apart from that the first two months of the year were mainly dedicated to the German Premier League as Samantha’s foot injury kept us from playing international tournaments. In the League Mülheim is performing very well and we have a lead of a few points.
By the end of February Samantha and I are finally ready for our comeback in the international circuit.
In my “home port†Mülheim we play the Yonex German Open. We have low expectations but we are more than happy to be on court again. We make a good win in the first round but in the second round we are just a little bit short to stunt against a top 20 pair from Hong Kong. Nevertheless it’s a promising kick off.
From mid March till mid April we practise very hard. We prepare ourselves for the European Championships in Kazan, Russia and I am fit. A European medal is one of my goals for this year but given the backlog that we have accumulated it’s not very realistic. Once in Kazan we win the first two rounds and we are in the quarter finals. There we will meet the number one Russian pair Durkin and Vislova. All of a sudden we are only one match away from a medal. This Friday, April 25, I can call the most special day from my badminton career so far.
Our match is scheduled in the early evening and the day seems to be endless. A few hours before the match I am ever so nervous. Once in the arena the nerves make way to an adrenaline rush I have never experienced before. We enter the court, we win the first game and lose the second. In the third game it’s all or nothing. We get excellent feedback and instructions from our coaches Kim and Rune. Towards the end of the game we manage to take a small lead of 2,3 points. I still remember the match point. The four of us exchange glances, we are determined to make this point! Then we play a long rally with a final winner at the net! The entire stadium is silent, but I scream, run around and jump. I am beside myself of excitement. We hug each other, the coaches and our masseur Gerrit. We have just won the first mixed doubles medal for The Netherlands in 12 years. I am overjoyed!
The next day, in the semifinals, the Danish top favorites Fischer and Pedersen are our opponents. We don’t stand a chance and we lose in two games. The day after is the medal ceremony and Samantha and I stand between the other 3 pairs, all Danish, with a medal around our neck. We are proud to be on that stage after such a difficult period. Those 7 minutes of the ceremony made me forget all disappointments and earlier losses. They were more than worth it. I enjoy every second of the ceremony: you may watch yourself
On May 11th I play together with my teammates of 1.BV Mülheim the final of the German Premier League. We meet Lüdinghausen in their sportshall. For all the badminton lovers it’s a great afternoon with beautiful and exciting matches. Marcus Ellis and I open the score with a win but unfortunately we lose the ladies doubles, both men’s singles and the ladies single. This leaves us with the runner up position and we are really disappointed. Still we are proud of this result and of the great season. Last year we ended third, this year 2nd so hopefully next year…………….
At the start of the summer period we play the Grand Prix (Gold) tournaments of Canada and the USA. In Vancouver we reach the final. We meet the German pair Schwenger and Nelte at the same time the Dutch National Soccer team plays Costa Rica in the quarter final of the World Championships Football in Salvador, Brasil. They win but we lose in two games. Quite disappointing.
Back in Holland we start to prepare for the World Championships in Copenhagen. 6 weeks of hard and intensive training at a very hot and sweltering training centre Papendal.
The MH 17 disaster on July 17 touches me deeply. So many innocent victims. It also makes me realize myself how often I have flown this route myself. It makes me even more aware again of the fact that I have to be grateful for every day I am allowed to do what I like most: playing badminton.
The World Championships tournament in Copenhagen is a special event. Samantha and I make a good win in the first round but in the second we lose against a Chinese pair. I stay in Copenhagen and my girlfriend joins me and we watch the semi finals and the finals together. We enjoy every minute! On Sunday we witness the spectacular win of Carolina Marin. A Spanish world champion! I believe this is the ultimate proof of what you can achieve with hard work and the right attitude.
The period October through November is very busy. We have 6 tournaments ahead of us and after every 2 events a week of intensive training is scheduled. At the Yonex Dutch Open we perform at our absolute top level. This tournament is used to test the new scoring system 5 games to 11. After 4 good wins we are facing the Indonesian pair Widianto and Dili in the final. We take a 2 games to 1 lead and in the 4th game we make a good start but the Indonesians still manage to win it. In the fifth and final game we don’t stand a chance anymore and we fail to win the tournament. Of course we are very disappointed about this result but at the same time we are more than proud of the performance we showed.
For the Asian Super Series in China and Hong Kong we drew the same opponents in both tournaments….Widianto and Dili. In the meantime this pair has come to the 11th place on the world ranking. In the gigantic arena of Fuzhou we play a very good match with many long rallies. In 2 games we take revenge for the loss at the Dutch Open. In the second round we had to acknowledge the former world champions the Indonesians Ahmad and Natsir as our superiors.
Exactly one week later, in Hong Kong, we were again facing Widianto and Dili. This time we fail to get grip on the match and we lose in 2 games. In the mean time we did manage to reach the top 25 of the world ranking again, which was one of the other goals this year.
Now at the end of December I look back with pride and pleasure at a year which has brought me a lot of wonderful things. An European Championships medal, finals at Grand Prix tournaments, winning from a pair which is in the top 10 now, number 23 on the world ranking and the final of the German Premier League. But above all I retrieved my playing pleasure which I had lost at the end of 2013.
2015 is almost here, an important year with again many new and nice challenges. Supported by my family, my girlfriend and my sponsors I am more than ready to battle again!
I wish you all a successful, sportive but above all healthy 2015!
